Chapter 6 #2
By no means did I let myself get wrapped up in the fantasy that I could wield, but I couldn’t deny something had happened last night.
Something my scrambled mind couldn’t quite find a logical reason for.
My chest began to ache, and I subconsciously rubbed the area with my palm.
It was a familiar pain that I had woken up with before.
But I had made myself a promise to not think of my Cychwyniad ever again.
In a pathetic attempt at self-care, I stuck to that promise. For now, anyway.
The other door was just as intricately carved as the one we stood in front of. But where the carving of D?n seemed to be gleaming from the candlelight, the other door seemed devoid of any light at all.
The door’s wood was considerably darker, almost as if it had been burnt before carving.
Like its counterpart, it was intricately carved, showing an ominous figure with upturned palms. Above each palm hovered a swirling black mass.
It was difficult to decipher, but it seemed to be a ball of shadows.
They were also nude, their jawline sharp, and their chest made of pure muscle, unlike the sensual curves and dips of D?n.
Pin-straight ebony hair cascaded down their chest. A loose swath of fabric hung low at their hips, covering anything private. A circlet of stone sat on his brow.
“And who’s that?” My question came out more of a whisper than I intended.
Ail Llew, whose eyes were still fixated on D?n, turned to look at the opposite door, then frowned deeply. He pulled in a deep breath before flicking his gaze to each corner of the foyer we stood in, as if what he was about to say next might get him in trouble.
“That is Llyr, the other Crewr. Our history said he grew envious of D?n and her children but was unable to create life of his own. So, he did the unthinkable, imprisoning D?n in Annwfyn, his realm of the underworld. He forced her to carry his children, then turned his sights on mortals and corrupted them with his power. In today’s times, they call themselves the Witches of Llyr.
” He looked at Llyr like he looked at me, with pure disdain.
“I thought we weren’t supposed to call ourselves Witches?”
Ail Llew’s jaw clenched. “We, as carriers of D?n’s power, don’t use that blasphemous title any longer.
Far too much of our blood has been spilled by their kind for us to be associated anymore.
Over time, we had periods of existing as one, all of us Witches.
But time and time again, they proved that they still carried that kernel of evil that Llyr had planted in their bloodline. ”
I opened my mouth to pry more from Ail Llew while he was feeling generous with information, but he spun on his heels again and started heading for the entrance to a corridor that led us away from the foyer.
“Hey!” I called out. “What is it with you and my grandmother? Give a girl some warning before you storm off like that.” Shamefully, I was out of breath by the time I caught up to him.
“Let’s get one thing clear, Non,” he said in a lethal whisper, “from this moment on, you will refer to her with the respect she deserves. She is the Ledr of the North, the matriarch of this Coven. She will be addressed as either Ledr or Ledr Bronwen. If I hear anything else slip past your lips, I will take it upon myself to remove them. Are we clear?”
For what felt like the hundredth time, he turned and walked with the speed and confidence of a much taller man. As for the mild threat, I shrugged it off. Water off a duck’s back, as they say. He’d obviously learnt from the best.
The inside of Granny’s humble abode was just as ostentatious as the outside.
The walls were decorated with a few tapestries, and in between each one, the same sandstone bricks as the outside peeked through.
A few sconces on the wall with candles perched on top lit the otherwise gloomy corridor, shining a light on the rich burgundy carpet that was so luxurious I definitely should have taken my scruffy trainers off at the front door.
The one corridor’s worth of rug probably cost more than I made in a month, maybe even a year.
Eventually, Ail Llew stopped outside a deep oak door shaped like the ones we had just passed through—arches that came to a tapered point at the top. This one, though, was missing any gods or deities, just featuring some simplistic carving of five interlocking circles at the centre.
“Ledr Bronwen is currently indisposed. She hoped to be available to escort you to your lodgings, but her prior engagement is currently running over. If you could take a seat, she will be with you shortly.” He nodded to a low wooden bench pushed up against the wall at the opposite side of the corridor.
Like the obedient granddaughter I was expected to be, I sat without another word. Maybe the big bad Ail Llew was just Granny’s glorified secretary? I kept that thought to myself—I quite liked my lips where they were. Besides, he’d be ridding me of my best asset.